Even if the open-enrollment period has passed for signing up for insurance via one of the exchanges, you might still be able to purchase subsidized insurance if you've had a qualifying life event. Qualifying events include moving to a new state, change in income, change in family, loss of coverage and others. You may even be able to apply simply because you did not understand that open-enrollment ended or you did not understand the health care law. If your income qualifies you for subsidized health care, you'll want to purchase through your state exchange.
Farmers has the fourth-largest market share in Texas at 8.7%, and a Consumer Reports overall score of 89 (above average and tied with State Farm). But according to J.D. Power, Texans are slightly less impressed with their Farmers claims experiences than they are with Allstate’s. Consumer Reports readers also expressed a bit more annoyance with the timeliness of their payments, and its complaint ratio, while still well below average for Texas as a whole, was higher than State Farm’s. Farmers’ financial strength is a couple of notches lower than the rest, too, which doesn’t mean it’s about to go bankrupt anytime soon — it’s just the difference between “quite stable” and “completely rock-solid.”
Non-owner car insurance is just what it sounds like. It’s insurance that covers the driver instead of the car. That is, if you don’t own a car, but frequently drive a friend’s car, rental cars, work cars, or use a car-sharing service, non-owner insurance covers your liability in the event of an accident. It can cover your liability for medical costs and property damage. In some states, non-owner car insurance can also help you regain your license after it’s been suspended. It can also lower car insurance rates if you buy a car later since there won’t be an uninsured period on your record. |
It might be the most difficult thing you’ll ever do, but it’s important to advocate for yourself during an emergency room visit. If possible, ask all the questions you can think of and make sure to get answers before agreeing to have any procedures done. And just because you’re at an in-network facility doesn’t mean you’ll always be treated by an in-network doctor, so make sure to talk to whoever is providing the care if you can. Obviously this isn’t possible if you’re incapacitated, but if you can, you should make clear what your health insurance does and does not cover. This can help you avoid an unexpectedly large bill later. If you do end up with a huge emergency room bill even though you have insurance, contact your provider and ask if there are any programs available for bill reduction.
You should also look into how the company handles the claims process, as the single biggest indicator of home insurance customer satisfaction is the company’s damage estimates. If they have a reputation for not covering the agreed-upon replacement costs of property or dropping customers from their policy for filing a single claim, you should probably avoid that company.
Car insurance helps provide financial protection for you, and possibly others, if you are involved in an accident. Auto insurance for your vehicle is usually required by all states. Review our state car insurance guides to see the different laws and auto insurance minimum required coverages. You can customize your auto policy to fit your needs. There are different coverages and limits you can choose to create your auto insurance policy. Check out our car insurance coverage page to learn more about each type of coverage.
We started by identifying Texas’s five biggest auto insurers by market share, and compared their financial strength, coverage options, and customer service, using methodology similar to our review on nationwide providers. Then, we checked J.D. Power and Consumer Reports to see how each company’s customers scored them, both overall and on their claims experiences. Next, we looked at the Texas Department of Insurance’s “Complaint Index” for each company — a measure of how consumer complaints filed against them compare to the state average. And finally we collected quotes for six hypothetical drivers, taking note of each company’s available endorsements and discounts.
American Family: American Family car insurance is the lowest-ranked company on our list. While a fair number of customers said filing a claim with American Family was easy, that was about the only positive thing they had to say, with the company faring poorly on measures of customer service, communication about claim status, value, and claim resolution.

UnitedHealthcare's online account system is easy to use because you can do everything in one place. Once you've logged into your account you can access a nurse hotline, order prescriptions and more. There are also online tools for tracking deductibles and expenses or finding a doctor in your area. If you'd prefer to have on-the-go access, the Health4Me app is free and easy to navigate. While this is a really good option for digital-first users, UnitedHealthcare was more expensive than the other companies we tested.

If your car is worth more than $3,000 and/or is less than 10 years old, we'd also suggest both collision and comprehensive coverage, too. Our estimates suggest drivers can buy comprehensive and collision insurance for an average of $600 to $700 per year (however, the cost may be higher for some cars), so you would spend $3,000 to $3,500 in premiums over five years. If your car is currently worth less than $3,000, you will have spent more on insurance than your car is worth. You can obtain the estimated value of your car from sites like Kelley Blue Book and Edmunds. Once you have both the value and a quote for coverage, you can determine whether collision insurance will be worth it.
Comprehensive car insurance covers damage to your car if it collides with something other than another car, like an animal or a tree, or if it’s damaged by vandalism, theft, or natural disaster. Again, if you lease your car or have an outstanding loan on it, this type of coverage will be required, but if you pay your car off, or it becomes worth less money than it would cost to repair, you can decline this coverage.
Collision and comprehensive insurance are two optional types of auto insurance where your insurer pays for repairs to your vehicle. While there are other optional auto insurance coverages, liability, comprehensive, and collision are three of the most common. These coverages work hand-in-hand to repair or replace most of the damages to your car. It's important to know the difference, and make sure you're adequately covered.
Let's use the aftermath of a major storm to illustrate the differences between collision and comprehensive. Within that storm, let's consider two hypothetical events: First, a heavy telephone pole was blown down and fell on your truck, or second, you swerved to avoid a falling tree and wound up crashing into a guardrail. In the first event, you couldn't control when or why a tree fell on your car. This kind of accident would get reimbursed under your comprehensive policy. In the second situation, you were driving the car and ultimately swerved into the guardrail. This makes it a collision, and collision insurance pays for the damages.
Texas is one of four states that have seen the highest increase in auto insurance premiums over the last seven years, according to Consumer Reports. While part of that jump is due to increased repair costs for the added technology in new cars, extreme weather also plays a role, with Hurricane Harvey a recent glaring example. Over half a million vehicles flooded in Texas during that storm, significantly raising insurers’ annual losses for 2017, and in turn, causing around an 8% jump in premiums this year. Add the fact that Texas is number one in the nation for hail damage losses, and its position at the top of the rate hike leaderboard is no surprise.
This might vary depending on your personal health and background, but generally this is an affordable company. We got roughly a dozen plan options in our queries, which we considered a decent selection. The company also offers home healthcare coverage, which is useful for older customers or those who have a chronic illness that could impact their ability to live alone. There aren't any short-term plans available though so this isn't the place to shop if you're between jobs or waiting for a new job's insurance to kick in. You also get access to wellness benefits like HumanaVitality, an online rewards program intended to help users develop healthy habits.

Still, the State Farm quotes we received were shockingly expensive when compared to the competition — typically around three times as much. While that’s likely a dealbreaker for most, it’s worth checking personalized quotes yourself, especially if you have a teen driver (for whom they seem to offer more discounts than our other picks). Another point in State Farm’s favor is its website, which is good at helping you understand which coverages best fit your specific needs. We would’ve liked a Live Chat feature, but there are plenty of contact alternatives, including a mobile app.

When comparing car insurance quotes, it helps to compare apples to apples; in other words, you want to be sure that the quotes you get are for identical - or at least very similar - auto insurance policies. Once you have a better idea of the type of coverage you’re looking for in a policy, this will be easy. To better understand coverage types start here
A prescription plan is another important consideration. If you need to take medications regularly you'll want to choose a plan with a good prescription plan. If you need to insure your entire family, you'll want to look at family deductibles and maximums. Only full-coverage options will satisfy the minimal essential health care insurance required to get around paying the fine.
Collision car insurance covers damage to your car if it collides with another car. If you lease your car or have a loan on it, your financing company will require this type of coverage. As your car ages or you pay it off, you can drop it. However, that means that if your car is damaged in a collision with another vehicle, you’ll have to pay for all repairs on your own.

Plans vary greatly. But the general rule of thumb is that the less you pay per month, the higher your deductible is. Higher premiums are usually associated with lower deductibles. Generally it is beneficial for those with existing health issues to opt to pay more per month and less out-of-pocket for services. Those in good health often opt for a high deductible option in hopes that they never have to actually pay the deductible but would mostly be covered if something major happened.

Even if the open-enrollment period has passed for signing up for insurance via one of the exchanges, you might still be able to purchase subsidized insurance if you've had a qualifying life event. Qualifying events include moving to a new state, change in income, change in family, loss of coverage and others. You may even be able to apply simply because you did not understand that open-enrollment ended or you did not understand the health care law. If your income qualifies you for subsidized health care, you'll want to purchase through your state exchange.
Allstate: Allstate is the eighth-best insurance company, with many Allstate customers in our survey reporting that they didn’t feel like they were in good hands. Allstate customers were particularly unhappy with the value they felt they got from Allstate, with many of them saying they wouldn’t recommend Allstate and didn’t plan to renew their policies.

USAA: USAA is the best car insurance company we found. Customers report that they love USAA for its customer service, ease of filing a claim, and frequent updates on claim status. USAA customers also report that USAA is a good value, and USAA’s average annual rates are some of the lowest in the business. The only downside we could find to USAA is that its insurance products are only available to veterans, members of the military, and their immediate families, so not everyone will be able to work with the top-ranked insurance company.

Services such as eHealthInsurance are simple to use and provide a variety of quotes but may not always show every option available. You may find more plan options by requesting plan information directly from the insurance company's website. Before purchasing new insurance it is always a good idea to ensure that your preferred doctor accepts the insurance you are looking to purchase. While your doctor may be listed on the insurance company's website, it is smart to call your doctor's office directly to verify.

Comprehensive car insurance covers damages from an "act of God," or events that are not caused by a car driving into something else. An "act of God" can include things like damage from a heavy tree branch falling on your car. Since you have no control over when or why a tree branch would fall on your car, this kind of accident would be covered under your comprehensive policy.